A Deeper Meaning
by ActressForLife
Summary: The team has to road trip across the country for a job. Arthur is driving late one night and Eames takes it upon himself to provide music choices which go over Arthur's head. A/E, with some cuteness and a couple kisses.  1400 words


**A/N: This is...sort of ridiculous. I don't own the characters, boys kissing, blah blah blah.**

Arthur pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to quell the headache that was beginning behind his eyes. The team was driving cross-country to get to a job. They were driving because Cobb claimed they needed to "keep a low profile", and buying plane tickets together would apparently put the whole thing at risk. Arthur was of the opinion that such a thing was bull shit, but he wasn't about to argue with the older man. So he resigned himself to spending far too much time trapped in a van with Cobb, Yusuf, Ariadne, and Eames.

He had not been looking forward to it. Then he had found out that they would be driving nonstop. That's when he started dreading the trip. It meant sleeping uncomfortably in a movie vehicle. Worst of all, Arthur had been chosen to take the night shifts driving, so he would have to attempt to sleep during the day.

Three days in and Arthur had averaged about 2 hours of sleep per day. It was next to impossible for him to do more than drift off for 20 or so minutes at a time. He had essentially given up and was staying awake at the wheel by drinking more coffee than was strictly healthy.

"Hello, darling!" Eames said jovially, maneuvering himself up into the front seat, jostling Arthur, and nearly causing him to run off the road in the process.

"Really Eames," Arthur groaned, looking at the clock. "It's 1:30 in the morning. Shouldn't you be sleeping or something?" He wasn't really in the mood to deal with Eames' bullshit. Too little sleep paired with so much driving was shortening Arthur's temper.

"Can't sleep back there, pet. Figured I'd be better off keeping you company up here." He grinned at the point man, who shot him a glare in return.

"Fine. Just…be quiet and don't make me drive off the road. I'd rather not die like that." Arthur mumbled, knowing it was folly to try and argue with Eames. Eames seemed to sense that and grinned a little wider.

He was content to sit and watch the trees go past…to a point, anyway. After about 15 minutes of silence Eames pulled out an iPod. "How about music then, eh?" he grinned across the front seat.

Arthur shot a look at Eames. "Must you?" he questioned coldly.

"Yes darling, I must." Eames said and picked a song.

Arthur narrowed his eyes as he heard the opening strains of music float from the speakers. "I've been really tryin', baby. Tryin' to hold back this feelin' for so long," Marvin Gaye sang from the stereo. Arthur blinked slowly as he recognized the song.

"Really Eames? _This_ is what you're going to subject me to?"

"What's wrong with this song darling?" Eames grinned and started to sing along. "Let's get it oooon! Ah, babe! Let's get it on!" he crooned, grinning at Arthur the entire time.

"Oh honestly." Arthur said, "Pick something else, please."

Eames pouted a little. "Fine then. Insult my taste in music." He scrolled through the music for a moment before grinning and playing something new. "Oh darling! Please believe me! I'll never do you no harm," was what issued from the stereo this time.

"Well darling? Do you approve of The Beatles?" Eames said.  
Arthur raised an eyebrow and gave a slight nod. "Better than that last song." He said grudgingly. He was actually very fond of The Beatles, but he wasn't about to gives Eames that satisfaction. As he drove he found himself subconsciously nodding along to the beat of the song and mouthing the words. He caught a glimpse of Eames grinning widely and shot him a look. "What?" he asked, knowing full well what the other man was about to say.  
"I think you appreciate my choice of songs a bit more than you want to let on." Eames said with the most self-satisfied smirk on his face. "Let's try this one on for size."  
It took Arthur a few moments to recognize Bryan Adams' "Everything I Do (I Do It For You)" before he snorted, "Well, that's cliché." He glanced at Eames only to see a slightly disappointed look flicker across the other man's face before. It was only there for a moment before the smirk returned, causing Arthur to think he had imagined the look.  
"Classic and cliché are hardly the same thing Arthur."  
"Whatever you say, Mr. Eames." Arthur muttered, returning his attention to the road.  
Eames cycled through a few more songs, and as he did so, Arthur noticed an odd trend in the music. All of the songs seemed to focus around love or unrequited love. That realization left him with an unsettling feeling in his stomach that he was trying very hard to ignore. Arthur found himself relaxing with Eames and starting to joke with the other man more. He settled into conversation with Eames comfortably. Most people didn't see the real dynamic between Eames and Arthur. On the outside, it was arguing and teasing, but below the surface the two men actually got along rather well. Eames said something ridiculous and Arthur found himself unable to stop laughing.  
"Ugh," Ariadne moaned from the back seat, "You two are so loud."  
"Sorry, love." Eames said and flashed her a winning smile. "Arthur has a hard time containing his love for me." Arthur rolled his eyes.  
"Whatever," she replied sleepily. "I have to pee."  
"There's a rest stop coming up in a few miles. I'll stop. Wake the others up, would you? I don't want to have to stop again for a while."  
Ten minutes later Cobb and Yusuf were grumbling about being woken up and the whole group piled out of the van. Arthur skipped the restroom, instead opting to grab a cup of coffee from the little kiosk set up near where he parked. He sipped the coffee and wandered around, trying to stretch his legs a bit. He saw Eames standing by the vending machines, beckoning to him with a "come hither" gesture. Making a snap decision, he walked over to Eames, who smiled and held out an earbud for his iPod, said "This is the true test. If you don't like this song, you have no class."  
Arthur raised an eyebrow and waited as Eames started the song. "There's a calm surrender to the rush of day…" Elton crooned. Arthur looked at Eames. "_You_ like Elton John?"  
"Of course I do darling. Who doesn't? But…there's another part of the test you don't seem to have passed."  
"Oh?" Arthur said without any idea what Eames was thinking.  
"Oh yes. There's something most of the songs I've played tonight have in common."  
"What might that be Mr. Eames?"  
"They all have to do with how I feel about you, darling." Eames said, smiling lazily and leaning towards Arthur.  
"Wh-what do you mean?" Arthur said, turning red as he became flustered. _But these are all love songs…_ he thought.  
"Oh, are you completely daft?" Eames said in exasperation. Arthur started at Eames, who sighed and closed the distance between them, mashing his lips against the other man's.  
"Oh." Arthur said breathlessly a few moments later. "I think I get it now."  
"Oh good, I was beginning to think you were actually mentally challenged" Eames said, smirking. He started to say something else but was silenced by Arthur kissing him hungrily. He grinned into the kiss and grabbed Arthur's hips, pulling him in closer. They were both startled at the sound of the van's horn honking. "Hurry up!" Cobb yelled from the van, "I want to get back on the road!"  
Arthur leaned his head against Eames' chest. "Are we done with this job yet?" he groaned.  
"Afraid not darling. Come on, duty calls." He grabbed Arthur's hand and dragged him back towards the van. "I'll even let you pick the music this time." They both smiled and walked back towards the van, leaving Arthur's cup of coffee spilled on the ground without a second thought.

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! reviews make me happy on the inside.**


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